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The Origin of Dogs

Posted by michael on from the land-of-many-fire-hydrants dept.

nessdog writes "Your old friend in the back-yard can read you like an open book according to this article from the BBC. They report that your dog's power of reading your body language is better than a chimps. So next time you tell a lie, just remember who might be watching..."

5 of 43 comments (clear)

  1. Re:3 canine Eves by Smallpond · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This article on canine genetics points out that
    aggression is the most frequent problem for which dog
    owners seek help. It also points out that biologists
    classify dogs as "social parasites". One view I've
    heard is that dogs have adapted to mimic the mannerisms
    of small children in order to get humans to care for
    them.

    Perhaps we should cross that poodle with a rabbit?

  2. dog breeding by phriedom · · Score: 2, Interesting

    It would be a lot easier to just mix the dog breeds instead of starting over with wolves. If you start now with breeding a little wolf into dogs, your grandchildren or great-grandchildren might get a "good" dog out of it.

    The problem with trying to make dog genes stronger though is that people don't want mutts or "mixed breed" dogs. People want pretty coats, and friendly, hard-working personalities. And breeding a dog to be healthy and live long doesn't win dog shows, which is where the money is for breeders.

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  3. Re:3 canine Eves by young-earth · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Hip dysplasia actually became common in the US in the 1930's. Yet it was quite rare in Australia until the 1970's and 1980's. That's not evidence for a genetic issue, but it does correlate quite effectively with when commercial (cooked, processed, etc.) dog foods came on the scene.

    If you feed your dog the BARF (Bones And Raw Food) diet, odds are they'll be a ton healthier. Research has shown that dogs from lines raised on the BARF diet tend to have near-zero incidence of dysplasia when their litters also use the BARF diet (see the books on the above site for details).

    Many breeders are coming to realize this - the problem is primarily intake not primarily genetics. This has been quite effective for our giant-breed dog, a Great Pyrenees. He's over 11 years old and still quite spry, without a trace of dysplasia.

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  4. East Asian origins by egeorge · · Score: 3, Interesting
    "His team found that, though most dogs shared a common gene pool, genetic diversity was highest in East Asia, suggesting that dogs have been domesticated there the longest."

    I thought this was an interesting point considering the fact that east asia is a part of the world where some people eat dogs.

    I wonder if there is any relationship between these facts.

  5. Re:3 canine Eves by lommer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Actually a friend of mine has a dog that is 1/4 wolf, and I can say that it is one of my favourite dogs in the world. It is not dangerous or really wild, and it is incredibly intelligent. It can pick up tricks or patterns much quicker than any of the other 3 dogs in the house. If I was going to get a dog, I would definitely want a part-wolf.